Odin
by Marco Dalmonte(Wotan, Viuden, Taranos, Zephyr)
Patron of the Northlands, Patron of Fair Rulership and Nobility, Lord of Sky and Winds
Level, Alignment, Sphere: 36 (Hierarch), NG, Thought
Symbol: the silhouette of two ravens whispering in a man's ears
Portfolio: authority and rulership, live one's life fully, knowledge, cunning, wisdom, sky and air, storms, winds
Worshipped in: Known World (Northern Reaches, Heldann, Thyatis, Darokin, Wendar), Norwold, Qeodhar, Isle of Dawn, Savage Coast (Eusdria, Robrenn), Davania (Thratia), Hollow World (Antalia, Neathar lands, Icevale, Merry Pirate Seas, Nithia)
Appearance: an elderly bearded man with a patch on his left eye, with broad shoulders but an arched back, clad in grey dusty clothes, with an old hat and cloak, holding a long spear while walking as a staff. He is always followed by his two ravens, Hugin and Munin, and he often appears riding his mythical eight-legged flying horse, Sleipnir.
History: Odin is one of the eldest immortals, one of those who do not remember their past (or pretend not to). He often theorised that during his ascension to immortality his patron stripped him of his memories, or that he did lose them the day he hanged from Yggdrasil to discover the secrets of the Multiverse. Whatever the truth, Odin is the current ruler of the Sphere of Thought, and spent a great deal of his existence travelling throughout the Multiverse to observe the actions of the mortal species and to discover the secrets of mortal and immortal minds. Many Immortals say that he gave away his left eye to drink at the spring of eternal knowledge (as the northern myths have it) and according to the rumours, he may even know things about the Multiverse's future that he has never revealed yet (something regarding the long awaited Ragnarok he is always talking about with his allies).
Odin is worshipped by the Antalians and their descendants, the Northmen, as well as the Eusdrians (who call him Taranos) and the Thratians (who still call him Wotan). They believe he protected them from the giants and gave them Midgard, the place where they live. Also according to their myths, Odin hanged himself to gift his followers with the secret of the runes, and for this ultimate sacrifice they respect and worship him as Odin All-father. According to the legends, the two ravens accompanying him (Hugin means Knowledge and Munin means Memory) are his eyes and ears, while his horse Sleipnir can take him wherever he wants in the wink of an eye. He is also revered as Zephyr by many races of the Sky Kingdom and by the Nithians.
Personality: Odin teaches his followers to use wits and intelligence in life, seeking knowledge and wisdom through experience, always keeping in touch with the world around oneself. His followers are pushed to become wise and fair leaders, following the example of virtue and justice of the more enlightened rulers, savouring the joys of life and learning from their mistakes instead of living as hermits. He is surrounded by a group of immortals he sponsored or helped during their quests to immortality, the so called Aesir and Asiniye, who make up most of the northmen's pantheon. He's also allied with many other immortals who are known as Vanirs by the followers of the Antalian Cult. His two nemesis are Hel and Loki. Hel is his opposite, reincarnating souls of evildoers to spread chaos and evil in the world as much as he reincarnates the good souls to rally more champions. Loki is one of the Aesirs, but he's doomed to betray everyone much like he did with his former patron Rathanos. Despite knowing and foretelling this, Odin insists in keeping him among his "children", and prefers having him close to watch his actions more closely.
Patron: unknown (likely none)
Allies: Thor, Frey, Freyja, Forsetta, Heimdall, Air Elemaster
Enemies: Hel, Loki
Classic D&D Stats:
Followers' alignment: any; clerics must be Lawful or Neutral
Favoured weapons: short spear (allowed all bludgeoning weapons, pike and javelin)
Clerics' skills & powers: +1 bonus to Wisdom, free general skills Authority, Persuasion and Diplomacy , +2 bonus to any one skill based on Wisdom
Paladins' skills & powers: lay on hands, free general skills Authority
D&D 3E Stats:
Domains: Thought, Good, Air, Knowledge, Nobility, Storm
Preferred weapon: spear (short or long)
Sources: GAZ7, GAZ2, HW, WotI, DotE, SCS
Additional Notes:
Odin's past is a mystery as much as Hel's, but there is strange coincidence in the fact that these two immortals closely resemble the Real World mythical deities, and also bear the same names. Also, they surround themselves with immortals who bear the same names of the RW Norse deities, and this is really weird. Sure, there are others who may have similar names (Thanatos, Nyx, Wayland, Tyche, even Ixion himself), but the fact that this group of immortals actively creates a pantheon which is the exact replica of the RW one (names included) is odd. And it is the only example in Mystara.
To explain this, I have come up with this idea. Odin and Hel came to the Multiverse many aeons ago, when the mortals were still nothing but animals and the Immortals waged their wars in the outer planes. They came to this multiverse after fighting their own Ragnarok in their universe of origin, the Dimension of Myth. Odin had prepared for centuries for Ragnarok, amassing thousands of brave souls in Valhalla for the final battle. Everything was already established by fate: he would have been slain, but his sons would have survived him to rebuild the earth in Gimlč. Unfortunately, things did not go as planned, and it was only his fault.
He was lured by Hel's tricks to actually think he could have won the war without dying, escaping the Norns' prediction. His actions however, caused the death of those who were destined to survive him, and chaos had its sway over Midgard. When the last of his warriors was dead, the war had ended, but the gods were no more. Only Odin and Hel were left, Hel laughing and Odin grieving for his sin against Fate.
The Norns saw and judged the two gods, and they cursed them to begin their war again in another universe. Thus they were cast in the Multiverse, with only vague memories of their previous existence, but still deities. They knew they were enemies the first time they met, and spent the rest of their existence trying to discover what tied them together. Odin discovered it when he hanged from Yggdrasil and dreamt of Ragnarok, as much as he had done in his previous life. So he started rebuilding his old world , rallying Aesirs, Asinyie and Vanirs to help him, and shaping the myths of his followers to mirror the ancient legends of his past. Hel slowly remembered what had happened too, and she did the same, preparing for the final battle and bringing even more chaos to the world.
And now they stand, waiting for Ragnarok. Each one tries to further the goals of their sphere, but they know that eventually they will come face to face again, and the wheel will turn once again. Odin is determined to meet his doom this time, and has instructed his allies well, while Hel wants to take another turn and eliminate Odin before Ragnarok even begins.
In the meantime, the Norns still wait and look from afar...